There is no denying that LeBron James is one of the greatest players in NBA history. LeBron walked into the NBA at the age of 18 with the weight of the entire league’s expectations on him. What makes his career even more impressive is that James was able to surpass those expectations and become one of the all-time greats.
But LeBron James went one step further when it comes to assessing his own legacy. LeBron James spoke recently with Inside The NBA’s Kenny Smith ahead of the 2022 NBA All-Star Game. The interview was conducted because it was James’ return to Cleveland, his home franchise where he won the 2016 NBA championship.
During the interview, LeBron James spoke about winning the 2016 NBA championship, coming back from 3-1 down to win the title. LeBron noted that coming back from 3-1 down against one of the greatest teams in NBA history to win the NBA championship made him the greatest player of all time, especially since no one gave them no chance to be able to do so (1:14 onward).
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“That moment I was like I am the greatest basketball player people have ever seen in all the facets. Like I can play 1 to 5, I can guard 1 to 5, just literally like doing something that’s never been done in the history of the sport. Teams that go down 3-1 were like 0 for 32 in finals history. There was nobody every coming out of there and nobody gave us a chance. I just felt like aint nobody better than me at this.”
James is a 4-time NBA champion, 4-time regular season MVP, and 4-time Finals MVP. On top of that, he has made numerous All-Star and All-NBA teams across his career and is universally acknowledged as one of the best players to ever play in the history of basketball.
LeBron did meet his perennial rival for the title of greatest of all time, Michael Jordan, at the 2022 NBA All-Star game. The two had a great interaction, one that fans really liked seeing. After the game, LeBron noted how important it was to interact with Jordan, and what role Jordan played in his career and the sport of basketball.
